Chicago City Hall boasts one of the world's most famous green roofs. As a result, the city has a reputation for being the capital of green roofs. But as architecture critic Blair Kamin notes from a bird's eye view, that's not exactly the case.
Kamin went to the observation deck of the Willis Tower, Chicago's tallest building.
"What I saw instead was this: About 10 green roofs, including a test model on the Tower's 90th floor. It's tied down with steel ropes to keep Chicago's howling winds from blowing it to the sidewalk.
That view is revealing: Ten years after Mayor Richard Daley had a lush, green roof planted atop City Hall, Chicago is North America's undisputed leader in covering roofs with vegetation. Yet the green roof movement in Chicago remains in its infancy, not only in numbers but in design quality."
However, the city's Department of the Environment says that there are about 500 green roofs either installed or in the development process right now.
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Paris Bike Boom Leads to Steep Drop in Air Pollution
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Why Housing Costs More to Build in California Than in Texas
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San Diego County Sees a Rise in Urban Coyotes
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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
Planning for Universal Design
Learn the tools for implementing Universal Design in planning regulations.
Smith Gee Studio
Alamo Area Metropolitan Planning Organization
City of Santa Clarita
Institute for Housing and Urban Development Studies (IHS)
City of Grandview
Harvard GSD Executive Education
Toledo-Lucas County Plan Commissions
Salt Lake City
NYU Wagner Graduate School of Public Service